1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a card game for use in connection with entertaining family and friends. The poker-bingo game has particular utility in connection with combining many of the features of two well-known games, poker and bingo, into a single entertaining new game.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Bingo and poker are two popular games that have stood the test of time. Each of these games provides their own form of entertainment, excitement, and suspense to the players. It seems that it would be desirable to combine the major concepts and features of the two games to provide a new game with its own unique features derived from these well-known games.
Card games of this type are known in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,079,711 to Wei et al. discloses a combination bingo and poker game, which uses a game board similar to that used in bingo. However, the Wei ""711 patent is different in structure from the present invention, does not draw standard playing cards to advance the game, and has the further drawback of requiring a winning bingo configuration before any of the poker hands come into play.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,649,023 to Schohn discloses a method of playing a parlor game where cards cover playing board sections. However, the Schohn ""023 patent involves a different method and the playing board has a different structure from that of the present inventions.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,723,377 to Salomon discloses a combination poker and bingo-like game, which uses playing cards and game boards, which have fixed poker-type combination of cards arranged in rows and columns. However, the Solomon ""377 patent uses both a different method and playing board structure from that of the present invention.
Also, U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,871 to Wilson et al. discloses a sequence board game that uses playing cards. However, the Wilson ""871 patent is closer related to the game of bingo, does not combine features from the game of poker, and further the playing board has a different structure form that of the present invention.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,377,992 to Audet discloses a method of playing a board game utilizing playing cards and tokens. However, the Audet ""992 patent uses a different method and playing board from that of the present invention.
Lastly, U.S. Des. Pat. No. 161,352 to Madieu discloses the design of a game board that may be of general interest and pertinent to the construction and design of the present invention. However, the playing board of the Madieu ""352 patent has a different structure from that of the present invention.
While the above-described games fulfill their respective, particular objectives and requirements, the aforementioned patents do not describe a game that combines concepts of bingo and poker in the method of the present invention, nor do they utilize a game board of player-tablets having the structure of the present invention.
Therefore, a need exists for a new and improved card game that can be used for family entertainment that combines aspects of both poker and bingo in a unique way. In this regard, the present invention substantially fulfills this need. In this respect, the poker-bingo game according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in doing so provides a game primarily developed for the purpose of entertaining family and friends.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of bingo-poker combination games now present in the prior art, the present invention provides an improved poker-bingo game, and overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages and drawbacks of the prior art. As such, the general purpose of the present invention, which will be described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a new and improved game board structure and method that has all the advantages of the prior art mentioned heretofore and many novel features that result in a bingo poker game that is not anticipated, rendered obvious, suggested, or even implied by the prior art, either alone or in any combination thereof.
The poker-bingo game of the present invention is a game that combines the concepts of poker and bingo. To attain this, the present invention essentially comprises individual player-tablets, a game board, a deck of standard playing cards, some poker chips, and some cover tokens. Up to thirteen individual player-tablets can be used in a single game, with each tablet having a unique indicia of twenty five playing cards imprinted on it and arranged strategically in a 5xc3x975 matrix so that no two player-tablets are the same. The game board is laid out with five pot areas comprised of a Center Pot, a Four-Corners Pot, a Four-of-a-Kind Pot, a Bingo Pot, and a Jackpot. The pot amounts are agreed on before the game with each player placing the appropriated number of chips on the pot areas of the game board. The pots do not have to have monetary value, therefore making this a family oriented game for all ages.
The rules define the winner(s) of the five pots as follows:
(1) The Center Pot is won by the first player whose card at the center of his/her player-tablet matches the card drawn from the deck of playing cards.
(2) The Four-Comers Pot is won by the first player(s) whose cards on the four corners of his/her player-tablet matches cards drawn from the deck of playing cards. It is possible to have more than one winner of this pot, in which case the pot is divided among the winners.
(3) The Four-of-a-Kind Pot is won by the player whose card from each of the four suites on his/her player-tablet matches cards drawn from the deck of playing cards.
(4) The Bingo Pot is won by the player(s) who has five consecutive cards in horizontal, vertical, or diagonal row on his/her player-tablet matching cards drawn from the deck of playing cards. Here again, it is possible to have more than one winner of this pot, in which case the pot is divided among the winners.
(5) The Jackpot is a special pot that can be defined in different ways. The pot is won by the first player to have all 25 of his/her player-tablet cards matching cards drawn from the deck of playing cards. However, the Jackpot is played only after one of the other three pots (excluding the Bingo Pot) has not been won in a predetermined number of games, in which case these pots that have not been won are moved to the Jackpot and the game is played for this large pot.
A game is declared over when someone wins the Bingo Pot, even if the other pots have been won. A new game will then be played by placing new bets on all pots, except the Jackpot. This allows for various pots to build up to sizable amounts, thereby increases interest and excitement in the game. This invention relates to a family game that can be played by as many as thirteen players of any age. The main objective of the invention is to provide entertainment and increasing excitement to the players as the game progresses. Although the game basically does not require a strategy to win, the combined excitement and suspense that is inherent in a both a bingo game and a poker game are combined to make this game unique.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated.
There are, of course, additional features of the game that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims attached.
Numerous objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon a reading of the following detailed description of presently preferred, but nonetheless illustrative, embodiments of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In this respect, before explaining the current embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of descriptions and should not be regarded as limiting.
As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
It is therefore an object of the present invention is to provide a new poker-bingo game that provides in the apparatuses and methods of the prior art some of the advantages thereof, while simultaneously overcoming some of the disadvantages normally associated therewith.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved game board and individual player-tablets, which is unique in structure.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved poker-bingo game that may be easily and efficiently manufactured and marketed.
An even further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved poker-bingo game that has a low cost of manufacture with regard to both materials and labor, and which accordingly is then susceptible of low prices of sale to the consuming public, thereby making such games economically available to the buying public.
Lastly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved method or set of rules for the game that provides multiple ways of winning and allows pots to build up to sizable amounts, thereby increasing the interest of more players in the game.
These together with other objects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty that characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there is illustrated preferred embodiments of the invention.